The Friendly Ghost

A nice woman lived by a large river. She loved children. She wanted to help

them in any way. She loved her community, and everyone in the community loved

her. She lived a very long time and became very wise.

When she died, she became a ghost. She was dead, but every night she

returned to her community. She wanted to help children and not to cause them

fright. But she had a scary voice. Children were afraid of her, but the ghost was a

good one. She only scared them to help them.

One night, some children and a dog were playing by the river. They were

having fun with their pet. But they were far from home. Then the weather became

bad. It rained and rained. The river was rising. It was very dark. The children knew

they were lost. They needed to go north, but they didn't know which direction it

was. When the moon came out, they saw a ghost by the river. The ghost said, “Go

away!"

The children felt great fright. They knew it was a ghost. Then the ghost moved

closer. She yelled again, “Go away!” The children became very upset. Some of

them began to cry. The children knew they had a choice: they could escape, or

they could stay and face this scary individual in the dark.

The children ran a long distance away. The ghost followed them all the way.

Finally, the children reached home. The ghost was very

happy. Soon the river rose higher and higher. It

was very dangerous. The ghost had helped the

children survive! She had saved them from the

rising water. She also used her power to

lead them home. Sometimes, meeting a ghost

has advantages. A ghost can save

your life!

UNIT 6 Word List

advantage (odvdontids) n. un Child.s

[edvæntid3]

An advantage is something that helps you.

→ Being tall is an advantage to a basketball player.

cause [kɔ:z] v.

To cause is to make something happen.

The cold weather caused her to get sick.

choice [tois] n.

A choice is the act or possibility of picking something.

I had my choice of five doors to open.

community [kamjú:nəti] n.

A community is a group of people who live together.

→

→ The kids from my community usually play together.

dead [ded] adj.

To be dead is to not be alive.

-

→ A dead person is usually buried in the ground.

distance [distəns] n.

The distance between two things is how far it is between them.

The distance between the Earth and the Moon is 384,400 kilometers.

-

escape [iskeip] v.

To escape is to run away from something bad.

The butterfly could not escape from the cage.

-

face [feis] v.

If you face a problem, you deal with it.

My sister and I have to find a better way to face our differences.

follow [falou] v.

To follow means to go behind someone and go where they go.

The little boy followed his mother home.

fright [frait] n.

Fright is the feeling of being scared.

She was filled with fright.

ghost (goust] n.

A ghost is the spirit of a dead person.

→ Many people are afraid of ghosts.

individual [indevidzuǝl] n.

An individual is one person.

Only one individual could win the bicycle race.

pet [pet] n.

A pet is an animal that lives with people.

· Out of all my pets, the dog is my favorite.

reach [rit] v.

To reach means to arrive at a place.

→ I was happy to finally reach my destination.

return [riten] v.

To return is to go back to a place.

→ I was happy to return home to my mom after school.

survive [servaiv] v.

To survive is to stay alive.

My dog survived her fall into the water.

www

upset [Apsēt] adj.

To be upset is to be unhappy about something.

→

She was upset because she broke her toy.

voice [vois] n.

A voice is the sound a person makes when they talk or sing.

He used a microphone, so everyone could hear his voice.

weather [wedə:r] n.

The weather is the condition of the air: hot, rainy, windy, etc.

The weather can be sunny, rainy, or cold.

6

wise [waiz] adj.

To be wise is to use experience and intelligence to make good choices.

Many people believe that owls are very wise animals.

Exercise 1

Part A Write a word that is similar in meaning to the

underlined part.

1. Sam was happy to go back to his house.

re___n

2. Her grandfather is a smart old man.

wi

3. William wanted an animal to live with.

P__

4. He studies what the condition of the air is like.

we

5. I have to deal with my rising credit card bill.

f

Part B Choose the word that is a better fit for each sentence.

1. fright / ghost

The

A scary place might cause

2. dead / upset

lives in the old house.

The tree fell down because it was

I was

3. advantage / reached

4. escape/ distance

He wanted to

He lived a long.

when I got a bad grade on the test.

After 10 hours of driving, I finally

He is smart and has a(n)

5. community / individual

The man is a nice

The town is a small

California.

in class.

from the room.

from the school.

The Jackal

and the Sun Child

A jackal is a wild dog with a big black back. It resides in the desert. But how

did the jackal get his black back? This was how it happened.

One day, the jackal saw a girl. She was sitting upon a rock. She was not a

normal child. She was a rare and beautiful sun child. She was bright and warm

like the sun. The child saw the jackal and smiled.

She said, "Jackal, I have been relaxing on this rock for too long. I must get

home soon. But, I am slow and you are fast. You will likely get me home more

quickly." Then she requested, "Will you carry me home? If you do, I'll give you a

gift. This necklace belongs to me, but I will give it to you."

The wild jackal agreed. So the sun child sat on the dog's back. They started

to walk. But soon, the jackal felt ill. The sun child was very hot on his back. The

heat was hurting his back very badly. "I made a terrible error in judgment." he

thought. He shouldn't have agreed to carry her. So he asked her to get off.

But she did not. The jackal's back continued to get hotter and hotter. He had to

get away from the sun child. So he made a plan. First, he ran as fast as he could.

He hoped the sun child would fall off. But she did not. So when the

sun child was looking at the sky, not aware of the jackal’s next plan,

he jumped into a field of flowers. As a result, the child rolled off his

back. The jackal ran away.

But the sun child left a mark on the jackal’s back, a visible

black mark. Ever since his experience with the sun child, the

jackal has had a black back.

Word List

aware [ǝwtər] adj.

If you are aware of something, you know about it.

-

→ I was not aware of the ringing phone.

badly [badli] adv.

Badly means in a severe or harmful way.

He hurt his arm badly playing with friends.

-

belong [bil(:)n] v.

If something belongs to you, you own it.

The blue suit belongs to Paul.

continue [kontinju:] v.

To continue something is to keep doing it.

→ She stood under her umbrella as the rain continued to fall.

error [erər] n.

An error is something you do wrong.

→ I made an error on my report, so my boss was angry.

experience [ikspiǝrians] n.

An experience is something you have seen or done.

Rock climbing was a fun experience.

field [fi:ld] n.

A field is a big area of land.

The field of flowers looked so pretty.

hurt [hərt] v.

To hurt is to do something that makes you feel pain.

She hurt her leg falling down the stairs.

→

judgment [dzidzment] n.

Judgment is the ability to form opinions or decisions.

→ It's good judgment to recycle your aluminum cans.

likely [laikli] adv.

If something likely happens, it will probably happen.

+ I will likely stay at home and watch TV tonight.

→

normal [nɔ̃:rməl] adj.

If something is normal, it is not strange nor surprising to you.

→ It is normal for me to bathe every night.

rare [reer] adj.

If something is rare, you do not see it very often.

→ It is rare for him to miss his flight.

relax [rilæks] v.

To relax is to rest.

The frog relaxed in the warm sun.

→

request [rikwėst] v.

To request something is to ask for it.

→

The little girl requested a special gift from Santa Claus.

reside [ri:zaid] v.

To reside means to live somewhere permanently or for a long time.

My brother and his family reside in a lovely house on the beach.

o result [rizált] n.

A result is something that happens because of something else.

→

As a result of all the rain, the man had to climb on the roof.

roll [roul] v.

To roll is to move by turning over and over.

→ You must roll the ball into the pins when you bowl.

since [sins] prep.

Since is used to talk about a past event still happening now.

→ Since 1992, he has been driving that car.

visible [vízəbəl] adj.

If something is visible, it can be seen.

The moon and stars were visible in the night sky.

1

wild [waild] adj.

If something is wild, it is found in nature.

You should be careful around a fox, because it is a wild animal.

The Dog's Bell

John's dog was a bad dog. He bit people frequently. John had great concern

about this. It was not an appropriate way for a dog to behave. His friends in the

village always expected the dog to bite them. The news about John's dog spread

through the village. None of the people wanted to go to John's house.

John tried to instruct the dog to behave, but it never worked. He tried to be

patient and teach the dog to be calm. That also didn't work. John didn't want to

punish the dog. "How will I stop my dog's bad habit?” John asked himself.

John's friend came to talk to him about the issue. During their important

meeting, his friend said, "The people in the village asked me to represent them.

We want your dog to stop this habit. Why don't you put a bell around the dog's

neck? This way, we would hear your dog coming down the street.”

John thought this was a great idea. Now, people could stay away from the dog.

It would not be able to bite anyone anymore.

The dog liked the bell, too. People looked at him when they heard his bell. This

made the dog very content. He liked the song the bell played when he walked.

One day, John's dog strolled through the village and met some other dogs. He

expected them to want a bell like his. But they

laughed at his bell. They said the bell made

people avoid him. John's dog shook his head.

"No, they look at me because they like the

bell."

The other dogs said, "You have the wrong

idea of what makes you popular. Of course

they like your bell. It tells them where you are

so they can avoid you. You aren't able to bite

them anymore!"

You see, being popular isn't something

positive when it's for the wrong reason.

Reading Comprehension

Answer the questions.

1. What is this story mainly about?

a. A dog that is frequently bad

b. A dog's stroll through town

c. A content man and his dog

d. A village that liked John's dog

2. What is true of the dog?

a. He likes none of John's friends.

b. He shakes his head too much.

c. He bites when it's not appropriate.

d. He expects people to be calm around him.

3. Why did the issue with the dog bother John?

a. People didn't think of John in a positive way.

b. People avoided going to John's house.

c. People didn't want John to represent them.

d. People didn't like the song that John played.

4. What did John do to stop the dog's bad habit?

a. He instructed the dog on learning tricks.

b. He punished the dog for biting.

c. He was patient and showed concern.

d. He put a bell around the dog's neck.

5. What did the other dogs say about the bell?

UNIT 4 26 Word List

appropriate [aprouprieit] adj.

When a thing is appropriate, it is right or normal.

→ It's appropriate to wear a suit when you go to the office.

avoid [ǝvoid] v.

To avoid something is to stay away from it.

Avoid the broken bottle on the floor.

behave [biheiv] v.

To behave is to act in a particular way, especially to be good.

→ She always behaves well when her father is around.

calm [ka:m] adj.

When someone is calm, they do not get excited or upset.

A nice warm bath makes me feel so calm.

concern [kənsə:rn] n.

Concern is a feeling of worry.

I was filled with concern after reading the newspaper.

content [kentent] adj.

To be content is to be happy and not want more.

→

The baby looked very content sitting on the floor.

expect [ikspekt] v.

If you expect something to happen, you believe it will happen.

-

→ I expect the bus to be here very soon.

o frequently [fri:kwantli] adv.

When something happens frequently, it happens often.

→ We meet frequently, either at the beginning or ending of the week.

habit [habit] n.

A habit is a thing that you do often.

Smoking is a bad habit that can kill you.

instruct [instrákt] v.

To instruct is to teach.

→ My teacher instructs us in several subjects.

issue [iju:] n.

d

An issue is an important topic.

The men spoke about issues that were important to the people.

none [an] pron.

None means not any of someone or something.

He spent all his money. There is none left.

patient [péifent] adj.

If a person is patient, they don't become angry or upset easily.

-

→ I had to be patient and wait until 5 o'clock to leave.

positive [pazǝtiv] adj.

If something is positive, it is good.

She has a positive future ahead of her after finishing college.

punish [páni] v.

To punish means to make someone suffer for breaking the rules or laws.

To punish me, my teacher had me stand in the corner.

represent [réprizent] v.

To represent is to speak or act for a person or group.

My lawyer will represent me in court.

shake (jeik] v.

To shake is to move back and forth or up and down quickly.

→ When people shake hands, it usually means they agree.

spread [spred] v.

To spread is to move quickly to more places.

I like to spread butter on my toast.

stroll [stroul] v.

To stroll means to walk slowly and calmly.

→ My dog and I strolled through the park today.

4

village [vilid3) n.

A village is a very small town.

→ There are only a few houses in my village.

27

The Report

Lee sat among the books at the library and thought about his group project.

They had to turn it in soon, but he hadn't even started his part! Jack and Claire

were in his group. They had worked hard. They were also very smart, and Lee

didn't want them to get a bad grade.

Jack did the report. He wrote a lot of very good sentences and described things

with great adjectives. Claire drew a nice map of the stars. Now, Lee needed to do

his part of the project.

"Well, I suppose I need to start my model," Lee thought.

Making a model of a planet was really hard. Lee tried to read several books,

but he couldn't comprehend any of the charts. "We're going to fail because of

me!" Lee said. He put his head down on the table and said, "I wish I could see a

planet, instead of having to read about it!"

Suddenly, there was a bright light. Lee was pulled from his chair, through the

roof, and right into a strange ship! "Hello, kid," said an alien. "Did you ask for

help?"

Lee told the friendly alien all about his project. The alien agreed to help Lee

solve his problem. "First, we'll fly through space to view the universe. Then, I can

help you make a model of my planet."

Soon, they were going through the clouds. They passed the moon. Then they

viewed Mars. Lee was very excited. Instead of a bad grade, his group would have

the best project ever!

"It's time to go home," the alien finally said. On the way back, he helped Lee

make a model of the planet

Mars. Soon, they were on

Earth.

"Thanks," Lee said.

"My model will be

awesome!" Then he

took his model and

said goodbye to his

new friend.

Word List

alien [eiljan] n.

An alien is a creature from a different world.

The alien came in peace.

-

among [ǝmin] prep.

If you are among certain things, they are all around you.

There was a red apple among the green ones.

->

o chart [tfart] n.

A chart is a list of information.

→ We used a chart to see how we had improved.

cloud [klaud] n.

A cloud is a group of water drops in the sky.

The sky was filled with white clouds.

comprehend [kamprihend] v.

To comprehend something is to understand it.

Henry could not comprehend the message.

describe [diskraib] v.

To describe is to say or write what someone or something is like.

They described their tree as colorful with gold ribbon and a star.

ever [evər] adv.

Ever means at any time.

→ Going skiing last winter was the most fun I've ever had.

fail [feil] v.

To fail means you do not succeed in what you try to do.

Since he failed to get the job, he was sad.

friendly [frendli] adj.

Friendly is behaving in a pleasant, kind way toward someone.

The friendly animals came up to the girl.

grade [greid] n.

A grade is a score or mark given to someone's work.

✦ I managed to get good grades on my report card.

instead [insted] adv.

Instead means in place of.

He ate the carrot instead of the ice cream.

library [laibreri] n.

A library is a place where you go to read books.

The library at school is full of books.

-

planet [plænet] n.

A planet a large round thing in space.

Saturn is the planet with the ring around it.

-

report [ripo:rt] n.

A report is something students write for school.

→ Karen had trouble writing her report.

several [sevərǝl] adj.

Several is more than two but not many.

→ He had to read several books for class.

solve [salv] v.

To solve something is to find an answer to it.

→→ All the students could easily solve the math problem.

suddenly [sádnli] adv.

If something happens suddenly, it happens quickly and unexpectedly.

I was suddenly surprised by the cake my friends brought me.

suppose [sǝpouz] v.

To suppose is to guess.

I suppose I should go home now.

universe [jú:nəvə:rs] n.

The universe is the known or supposed objects in space.

The universe is so large that it cannot be measured.

3

view [vju:] v.

To view is to look at something.

→ Michael likes to view himself in the mirror.

The Laboratory

Mia's father had a laboratory, but she had no idea what was in it. Her dad

always closed and locked the door when he went in. She knew that he used it to

do projects for work. He never told Mia what these projects were.

One night, Mia approached the door to the laboratory. She stopped and

thought, "I wonder what crazy experiment he is doing now." Suddenly, she

heard a loud noise. It sounded like an evil laugh. The noise scared her, so she

walked quickly back to her room.

The next night, her friend Liz came to her house. When Liz arrived, Mia told

her about the night before. "Oh, it was terrible," she said.

"Why don't we see what is in there?" Liz asked. "It will be a fun adventure!"

Mia felt nervous about going into her father's laboratory, but she agreed. As

always, the door was locked. They waited until Mia's father left the laboratory to

eat dinner. "He didn't lock the door!" Liz said. "Let's go."

The laboratory was dark. The girls walked down the stairs carefully. Mia

smelled strange chemicals. What terrible thing was her father creating?

Suddenly, they heard an evil laugh. It was even worse than the one Mia

heard the night before. What if a monster was going to kill them? Mia had to do

something. She shouted for help.

Mia's father ran into the room and turned on the lights.

"Oh, no," he said. “You must have learned my secret."

"Your monster tried to kill us," Mia said.

"Monster?" he asked. "You mean this?" He had a

pretty doll in his hands. The doll laughed. The laugh

didn't sound so evil anymore. "I made this for your

birthday. I wanted to give it to you then, but you

can have it now. I hope you like it!"

HE

UNIT2 14 Word List

adventure [adventſər] n.

An adventure is a fun or exciting thing that you do.

Riding in the rough water was an adventure.

→

approach [ǝprout] v.

To approach something means to move close to it.

The boy approached his school.

carefully [ktərfəli] adv.

Carefully means with great attention, especially to detail or safety.

→ The baby carefully climbed down the stairs.

chemical [kemikǝl] n.

A chemical is something that scientists use in chemistry.

The scientist mixed the chemicals.

create [kriéit] v.

To create means to make something new.

→ She created an igloo from blocks of snow.

evil [i:vǝl] adj.

Evil describes something or someone bad or cruel, not good.

The evil figure scared us all.

experiment likspérament] n.

An experiment is a test that you do to see what will happen.

The student did an experiment in science class.

-

kill [ki] v.

To kill someone or something is to make them die.

→

I killed the fly with a fly swatter.

laboratory [læbəratòri] n.

A laboratory is a room where a scientist works.

→ My mother works in a laboratory.

laugh [læf] n.

Laugh is the sound made when someone is happy or a funny thing occurs

→ The sound of their laugh filled the room.

loud [laud] adj.

If a sound is loud, it is strong and very easy to hear.

The man's voice was so loud that we all could hear him.

→

nervous [nårvəs] adj.

When a person is nervous, they think something bad will happen.

The boy became nervous when he heard the news.

noise [noiz] n.

A noise is an unpleasant sound.

The crying baby made a loud noise.

project [pradzēkt] n.

A project is a type of work that you do for school or a job.

His afternoon work project was to paint the room green.

scare [skea.r] v.

To scare someone is to make them feel afraid.

-

→ My uncle was scared by what he saw in the room.

secret [si:krit] n.

A secret is something that you do not tell other people.

The two boys were sharing a secret.

-

shout [Jaut]

To shout is to say something loudly.

→ My boss shouted at me because I was late for work.

smell [smel] v.

To smell something means to use your nose to sense it.

The two friends smelled the flower.

terrible [terǝbǝl] adj.

If something is terrible, it is very bad.

The way he treated his classmate was terrible.

-

worse [wers] adj.

If something is worse, it is of poorer quality than another thing.

→ Business was worse this month than last month.